Russian independent Lukoil has finalised drilling the first appraisal of the Independence discovery in block CI-401, offshore Cote d’Ivoire.
The company says it is evaluating data obtained.
“The data provided by the well is currently being processed in order to summarize the obtained information about the field and evaluate the potential resource base of the project”, Lukoil says in a release. “This work will result in a final decision on further field appraisal”.
The discovery well, drilled by Vanco, penetrated eight metres of hydrocarbon pay in “good-quality Turonian-aged sand package”, Vanco said at the time of finalizing that well in December 2011. Recovered hydrocarbon samples from that well “indicate the oil registers at 40 degree API gravity”, the company allowed. The operator temporarily abandoned the well at a total depth of 4,132 metres. Vanco has since 2012 surrendered operatorship to Lukoil.
Lukoil claims that Independence-2 “has proven oil presence in the Turonian sands of the oil and gas condensate field of the Independence structure”. The depth of the appraisal well “is over 4,500 m, while water depth at the drilling site exceeds 1,600 m. The drilling was done on Ocean Rig’s Eirik Raude, a 5th generation self-propelled offshore platform”.
The next phase of the company’s drilling programme offshore the Cote d’Ivoire “will include drilling an exploration well in block CI-101”, Lukoil adds. “The adjacent CI-101 and CI-401 blocks are located 30-40 km off the Cote d’Ivoire coast in the Tano oil and gas basin. The areas of the CI-101and CI-401 blocks are 2,403 and 304 square kilometers, respectively. The water depths range from 100 to 2,500 meters”. Lukoil entered a production sharing agreement for the exploration, appraisal, development and production of hydrocarbons in blocks CI-101 and CI-401 in 2006. Shares in the project are currently distributed as follows: Lukoil – 56.66% (operator since 2012), PanAtlantic (ex Vanco) – 28.34%, state-owned PETROCI Holding – 15%.
